Comments on: TPR News: Friday, December 1, 2006 - Return of the postal rebels and Chongryon searched

by: ken

Sun, 03 Dec 2006 06:13:18 +0000

hey Tom - that was my DPJ-style walkout. I’ll be back early next week, when concessions are made to my demands.

by: DeOrio

Sat, 02 Dec 2006 18:50:22 +0000

Tom, under normal circumstances, Ken does the Monday news and I do the Thursday one. I missed a couple of weeks of recordings, though.
The Last Word is a new feature we’re trying out for two reasons: 1. Although we compile the news for those who don’t have the time or aren’t able to keep up with the Japanese news, we know that nothing in TPR News is unavailable elsewhere. 2. While we’re happy with the success of TPR News, our Op/Ed pieces and Seijigiri consistently draw an audience larger than we expect, which leads us to believe that our listeners like a bit of opinion with their news. We’re experimenting in an attempt to put something out there that people want to hear, but have no fear, the news itself will continue to be done straight, sans opinion.

by: Tom - NYC

Sat, 02 Dec 2006 18:01:28 +0000

Where was Ken for the TPR News reading……abducted by the N Koreans? You should have run a story on that…you are really neglecting that issue which is why the Japanese people have to turn to mainstream media outlets like NHK for the real pressing issues facing the nation….just like Fox News in the US. Seriously though, well put “Final Word” on NHK, but wouldn’t opinions like that be better expressed in the Seijigiri section than in the News?

by: Ken

Sat, 02 Dec 2006 13:04:35 +0000

J-Rod: I guess NHK’s taking a cue from Coca-Cola Japan:

“What? People like it? Cancel the product and roll out a new one!”

by: Jarad

Sat, 02 Dec 2006 11:42:00 +0000

Actually NHK does have a large number of shows for kids, although because of the need to change something that is successful on TV here many of the shows are altered, or cancelled. The others, well most of them are from PBS in the United States with Japanese dubbing.

by: Japan Probe -Japan News & Culture Blog » Blog Archive » News for December 01, 2006

Fri, 01 Dec 2006 09:12:19 +0000

[…] -More Political/Society/Business news for today at Trans-Pacific Radio! […]

by: ken

Thu, 30 Nov 2006 17:19:28 +0000

I have to agree with you for the most part on NHK. I think their approach is wrong - it’s simply a ripoff of the way the RIAA has gone about dealing with their supposed revenue loss through illegal downloads - and notice how little that has done to solve the perceived problem.

I don’t think that the Tokyo Summary Court is going to side with NHK on this issue - the law simply is not there to back up NHK’s claim. As we’ve seen time and time again with the court system in Japan, courts see their role as to determine what is legal and what isn’t - they aren’t out to interpret the law. I believe that a finding in NHK’s favor would be a shocking ruling and would be open to criticism of some kind of judicial meddling.

That said, I don’t think anyone should be paying until the court makes a decision. NHK seems to think that merely filing the request will cow people enough to make them pay. They may be right. But what are the consequences of such a strategy bound to be? As you’ve hinted, I think that the national broadcaster will end up scorned and hated, which is truly sad.

We know that by now, NHK officials must have gone to the Ministry of Posts and Communications, seeking a change in the law that would require people to pay. I wonder why such a change has not been proposed at the cabinet level. Perhaps the government is against doing such a thing. Perhaps due to NHK’s intransigence over the abduction issue - by having to take the step of forcing them to broadcast, the ministry will not back their requests for legislation.

I’ll have to dress like a tourist again and do some more lunchtime visits to coffee shops around Kasumigaseki, sitting next to the guys with rotten teeth who figure I can’t understand. I’ll get back to you on that one…